In 1974, a newscaster in Sarasota, Fla., pulled out a gun and shot herself on live television. In today's world, countless people would have seen Christine Chubbuck's very public suicide on the Internet afterward, but back then, the woman's death warranted some mentions on national nightly news before she faded into obscurity.

The incident is coming to light once again, however, after two movies about her life premiered at Sundance. One is the feature "Christine," which stars Rebecca Hall as the journalist, and follows her depressive spiral. The second is the documentary "Kate Plays Christine," about an actress who gets a job to play the newscaster in another project, then moves to Sarasota to investigate Chubbuck's life.

With renewed interest in Chubbuck, we're republishing a profile written by Sally Quinn in 1974, shortly after the newscaster's suicide:

Christine Chubbuck: 29, Good-Looking, Educated, A Television Personality. Dead. Live and in Color.

August 4, 1974, page F1

Amy ArgetsingerAmy Argetsinger is an editor for the Style section. A staff writer with The Washington Post since 1995, she covered the Maryland suburbs, higher education and later the West Coast as a Los Angeles-based reporter before serving eight years as a Reliable Source columnist. Follow

Stephanie MerryStephanie Merry oversees books coverage for the Style section. She previously covered pop culture and wrote movie reviews. She joined The Washington Post in June 2008 after working on the business side at the Hill newspaper. Follow